Stella's heart pounded as she ran towards the explosion with Flack close behind her. Her mind rushed to a million terrible scenarios as she connected Mac's disappearance with the explosion. The smoke began to clear as she made her way to the rickety building that had exploded just moments before. The explosion had blown out one of the wooden walls of the building and beyond the smoke she could see two figures stumbling to stand. She jumped over the wreckage of the wall that now lay in the parking lot and pushed through the opening it had left. Her heart stuttered as she finally laid her eyes on Mac and Joey. Both were standing in the wreckage, their faces and clothes covered with dust and small debris. She immediately grabbed Mac's arm as he swayed lightly on his feet. She spotted flecks of blood from a couple of lacerations on his face. He flinched under her grip, but visibly relaxed as he recognized her voice when you spoke.

"Mac, are you okay?" she asked as she quickly looked him over for injuries. She glanced to her left and saw Flack doing the same for Joey, who was visibly shaking.

"What?" Mac asked loudly as he struggled over his ringing ears to hear what she had said.

"Are you okay?" she replied just as loudly.

"I'm fine," he said, his voice slightly softer. Stella nodded, but then her eyes caught the blood flowing from his previous stab wound. The sling was spotted with blood.

"Paramedics will be here in a few," she said and he sighed heavily.

"Stella, I'm fin-" he said, but she cut him off.

"You're bleeding, Mac," she said and lightly tapped his arm. He let out an irritated grumble as he finally registered the pain. Stella glanced over as she heard the sirens approaching. She watched Flack lead Joey out of the rumble. Her eyes dropped to the char marks on the floor where the explosion had originated and had made out the remains of human flesh. She didn't have to ask who had received the brunt force of the explosion because the anger on Mac's face told her everything she needed to know. She let out another long sigh as she realized their lead was now their newest case. "C'mon, let's get you checked out and then I'll drive you home," she gently took his uninjured arm and was surprised when he followed her obediently.

"Yes, boss," he mumbled with a smirk.

XXXXXXXXXX

"I told you I'm fine," Mac said as he dropped his keys on the table and kicked his shoes off. She watched as he tried to shrug his jacket off, but the new sling got caught. The doctor at the hospital had replaced Mac's torn stitches and with a stern warning and a new sling had set him free. She walked forward and swatted his hand away before she carefully removed the sling and helped him slide his jacket off.

"It was worth it though, wasn't it? We got you some good pain killers so you can have loads of fun tonight," she teased lightly as she started to unbutton his dress shirt, which was still stained dark with dust. He chuckled lightly as he held his arm still and allowed her to pull his dress shirt off, wincing slightly as the fresh stitches stretched. They stood in silence for a long moment as she helped his arm back into the sling. She made some final adjustments before she wiped a nonexistent piece of lint from his black t-shirt and forced her eyes to look up into his. The deep blue of his eyes remained and the redness from the corneal damage almost made the color brighter. His gaze stared just barely past her eyes. "You know that was stupid, right?" she said quietly. He nodded silently, not needing to ask what she was referring to.

"We heard the sound and thought someone was in trouble," he said, repeating the words he had said while he had given Flack his statement at the hospital.

"Don't even try to tell me you thought that sound was random…you were looking for Jake and you know it," Stella said, her voice scolding. Mac let out a breath.

"I had a hunch," he shrugged.

"Yeah, well that hunch could have gotten you killed," she said fiercely, the fear she had felt as she had watched the explosion still raw in her mind. "Not to mention the danger you put Joey in," she added. Mac fixed his gaze downward and had the decency to look ashamed.

"I'm sorry," he said softly and she immediately felt her anger disappear. She hated that she could never stay angry with him long.

"Good," she said and placed a hand on his cheek, swiping away some of the dirt. She was surprised when his free hand reached up and grabbed hers gently. His hand turned in hers swiftly and carefully brushed up her arm to her neck. It wasn't too often that Mac initiated physical contact.

"I'm trying not to forget your face," he muttered as an explanation as his hand moved up to her cheek. His thumb brushed across her nose and then down to her lips. She closed her eyes as his fingers dusted over her eyelashes, brushed against her eyebrows and then ran up to her forehead, his fingers memorizing every line and curve. She could almost see his mind working to formulate the full picture. Then, he surprised them both by leaning in and placing a kiss to her forehead. He pulled back and dropped his hand.

"Update complete," he said quietly. "I can see you again." She grinned up at him. They stood close together for a long minute, enjoying each other's presence in silence.

"You want to stay for coffee? I'll share my pain killers," he said with a smile. She laughed and nudged him gently.

"I would love to," she said. "However, sharing prescription drugs is not appropriate behavior for a man of your stature," she added with a grin. Mac chuckled lightly and Stella didn't realize how much she had missed the sound until that moment. It had been a while since he had laughed…since before his accident.

"Well, do you want me to burn down my apartment or do you want to make the coffee?" he asked with a smirk as he sat on couch and kicked his feet on the coffee table in front of him. She grinned and ruffled his hair playfully as she walked behind the couch and headed into his kitchen. She quickly started the coffee and relished the peaceful sound of the coffee brewing as she sat down next to Mac on the couch. She kicked her sock covered feet up onto the table next to his. They sat in a comfortable silence for a long moment. She had always liked that they could sit together and not say anything. It was a casual comfort she loved and sometimes his silence spoke louder than any words could.

After a few more silent minutes, she lightly tapped her sock covered feet against his.

"I can hear the motors in your head working in overdrive," she said. She knew if he wanted to talk he would and if he didn't want to talk, he wouldn't…it was an understanding they had come to a long time ago. It still amazed her that as well as she thought she knew Mac, there was still so much mystery to the man.

"I was just thinking," Mac mumbled, clearly still entangled in those thoughts. She waited for him to continue. He was silent for another long moment before he pulled himself from his thoughts and shared them with her. "I know Jake killed Lincoln and it makes sense because he wouldn't want any loose ends-" Mac said.

"And Lincoln was too mentally unstable to be keeping secrets," Stella finished. Mac nodded and fell into silence again.

"I just don't understand why he slipped up a year ago and why he waited a whole year to break out…he obviously had Lincoln to help, so why sit around all that time?" Mac asked.

"Maybe he just got too cocky," Stella shrugged.

"I don't know, Stel" Mac released a heavy sigh. "I feel like we are trying to figure out this huge puzzle but we are missing half of the pieces…I don't want to wait for him to kill again," Mac said wearily. Stella reached out and grabbed Mac's hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"We won't have to, Mac," she assured. "Tomorrow we are going to comb through all the files from start to finish and we will catch something that will lead us to Whitner," she added confidently. He smiled weakly and continued to stare straight ahead at his feet. She squeezed his hand once more before getting up to get their coffee. The coffee machine automatic alarm flashed at her in the form of bright blue lettering. As she reached out to stop the blinding light that she had always hated…especially when she was sporting an already throbbing headache.

"Stella, wait," Mac's urgent voice sounded and she immediately froze at his tone. She heard him approach quickly and suddenly he was moving past her. He stopped in front of the coffee maker, staring intently at it. He bent slightly to focus on the blue digital letters flashing to inform them the coffee was ready. He was quiet for a long moment before he turned to face her, a surprising smile on his lips.

"What?" she asked, confused.

"I saw that," he said, his smile growing. She frowned for a moment until realization hit her.

"The light?" she asked, her heart leaping at the thought.

"Yeah, I can't see the letters, but color…I couldn't see color a couple hours ago, but now-," he broke off in excitement.

"That's amazing, Mac!" she grinned and automatically wrapped her arms around him. She closed her eyes for a moment as they allowed themselves to enjoy the small victory. It was a very slight change and he didn't have his vision back, but it was a small stutter forward in what seemed like a long journey uphill. Maybe they would make it through this in one piece.

XXXXXXX

Sam Turner walked quickly down the dark street, his coat drenched from the rain and his limbs frozen from the cold air. He rounded the corner and walked along the large church to the cemetery hidden behind it, concealed only by age old trees and bushes. He felt a shiver run through his body as he waited outside the old gate at the front of the cemetery, but it had nothing to do with the cold.

"Strange place to meet," Sam said, his back turned to the man whose presence he could feel behind him.

"I thought it was poetic considering the circumstances of our business," the man said, his quiet voice carrying in the wind. Sam nodded carefully as his hand brushed against the rusted metal of the gate in front of him.

"Can you do this job?" Sam asked after a moment's pause.

"Of course," the man said, his cold voice full of confidence.

"I can't afford any more mistakes on your part," Sam added.

"I should've handled it myself last time," the man said apologetically. "Consider it done."

"Do it soon," Sam said as he headed for the cemetery, away from the man behind him. He didn't wait for the man's reply as he carefully stepped around each tombstone. There was a stiff hum to the air that somehow felt like a warning from nature of what danger lay ahead. It felt like there would be no sunny days until all of this was over.

Okay, so this chapter did get a little cutesy with Mac and Stella, but I hoped you liked it anyway...sometimes happy scenes are good, right? Anyway you better review...please? :)